Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Exact Sciences Corporation $EXAS

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. decreased its holdings in Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS) by 12.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 87,510 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 11,920 shares during the period. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.’s holdings in Exact Sciences were worth $4,788,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in shares of Exact Sciences in the 2nd quarter worth $157,805,000. Holocene Advisors LP grew its stake in Exact Sciences by 189.5% in the second quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 2,145,181 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $113,995,000 after purchasing an additional 1,404,086 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in Exact Sciences by 643.1% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,286,595 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $70,390,000 after purchasing an additional 1,113,459 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Exact Sciences during the second quarter valued at about $48,372,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Exact Sciences by 73.3% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,753,283 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $93,169,000 after buying an additional 741,517 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.82% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Exact Sciences

In related news, EVP Brian Baranick sold 2,858 shares of Exact Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.08, for a total transaction of $200,288.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 22,368 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,567,549.44. This trade represents a 11.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jacob A. Orville sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total value of $375,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 23,237 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,775. This represents a 17.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on EXAS shares. Evercore ISI set a $105.00 target price on shares of Exact Sciences and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $105.00 price objective (up previously from $77.00) on shares of Exact Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 20th. William Blair cut Exact Sciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. TD Cowen lowered Exact Sciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $105.00 price target on Exact Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, twenty have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Exact Sciences has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $87.06.

Exact Sciences Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EXAS opened at $102.43 on Friday. Exact Sciences Corporation has a twelve month low of $38.81 and a twelve month high of $102.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company has a market cap of $19.54 billion, a PE ratio of -19.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s 50 day moving average is $96.52 and its 200 day moving average is $68.59.

Exact Sciences (NASDAQ:EXAS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The medical research company reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.11. Exact Sciences had a negative net margin of 32.01% and a positive return on equity of 1.67%. The business had revenue of $850.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $810.42 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.21) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Exact Sciences Corporation will post -0.58 EPS for the current year.

Exact Sciences Profile

Exact Sciences Corporation is a molecular diagnostics company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, dedicated to the early detection and prevention of cancer. The company’s flagship product, Cologuard®, is a noninvasive, stool-based DNA screening test for colorectal cancer that was developed in collaboration with the Mayo Clinic. By combining DNA mutation analysis with hemoglobin detection, Cologuard aims to improve screening adherence and identify cancers and precancerous lesions in average-risk adults.

Since its founding in 1995, Exact Sciences has expanded its portfolio through strategic acquisitions and internal research and development.